The present invention relates to an evacuant utilizable for constipation or evacuation of bowel contents, and more particularly, it relates to an evacuant of magnesium type possessing a satisfactory evacuating effect in a smaller dose substantially without accompanying irritation to bowel unlike a conventional evacuant of magnesium type heretofore known to exhibit evacuating effect only in a relatively large dose.
From the past, known as an evacuant are tablets or semi-liquid preparations comprised of magnesium oxide or magnesium hydroxide as a main ingredient and incorporated with a binding agent, a disintegrating agent, etc. In case of evacuants of this type, however, it was necessary to take them in a greater dose increased in its weight for achieving a satisfactory evacuating effect so that it was very inconvenient to take such a greater dose of the evacuant. Such conventional evacuant irritates bowel to cause peristalic movement for acceleration of evacuating action, thus resulting in side-effects such as bellyache and intestinal damage for the sake of long-term administration. It can hardly be said therefore that conventional evacuants are taken safely for health.
In order to solve these-problems, the present inventors already developed an evacuant comprises of magnesium oxide, a binder capable of displaying evacuating effect and a disintegrating agent capable of exhibiting evacuating effect and applied for a patent (Japanese Laid-open Patent Appln. No. Hei. 9-40561).
As a result of the present inventors further research made by tracing the gist of the above patent application for developing a more effective evacuant which is reduced in its weight for facilitating oral administration, it has now been found surprisingly that an evacuant containing magnesium oxide of a specific BET value (unit: m2/g; referred to hereinafter simply as xe2x80x9cBET valuexe2x80x9d; this BET value is well understood as xe2x80x9csurface areaxe2x80x9d of a solid substance such as a solid catalyst and can be measured according to the so-called BET method using a gas adsorption for determination of a catalyst activity) as an effective ingredient shows an excellent acid reactivity as well as a selectively good evacuating effect and possesses an activity for promoting evacuating action without accompanying any side-effect even after administration for a long period of time, unlike preparations widely utilizable as an evacuant from the past which irritate bowel directly. The present invention has been accomplished on the basis of the above finding.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an evacuant easily capable of oral administration which exhibits an evacuating effect satisfactorily in a smaller dose without irritating bowel.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an evacuant capable of making the action of good (character) bacteria prevailing to keep the environment of bowel well thereby extremely suppressing odor of feces or stool, which comprised of the aforesaid specific magnesium oxide incorporated with lactic acid bacteria, especially a mixture of sporolactobacteria such as Sporolactobacillus inulinus and an yeast extracts and/or an oligosaccharide.
Other and further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent more fully as the description proceeds.